For Sanetoshi's Sake
by flower-strike
Summary: Kanba prefers doing things for Himari to doing them for Sanetoshi, but this isn't so bad. Short, gen; a silly idea I couldn't get out of my head.


"I don't understand how this is going to help Himari," says Kanba after a while.

"Mm," replies Sanetoshi, unhelpfully. "But isn't it electrifying?"

There is surprisingly little work for the two leaders of the reassembled Kiga Group. As the adopted son of Kenzan Takakura, Kanba finds that he is treated almost as a figurehead and barred from carrying out missions that don't directly relate to him. Sanetoshi's ghostly nature means there are a number of things in the real world that he can't interact with, so Kanba spends a lot of time helping him with simple tasks.

This would be an okay pastime if everything Sanetoshi wanted weren't completely inane.

"The black rabbits are hungry," he'd say, or, "we need electrical tape for the base." Kanba puts up with these kinds of requests: even though he knows there are lower-ranking comrades he could pass the work onto, at least this gives him something to do.

This morning, Sanetoshi spares only a cursory glance for the rows of screens in their office—which is fine, since nothing has changed overnight—before spinning around in his chair.

"Kanba," he says, drawing each syllable out. "Takakura Kanba."

Kanba stays silent. He can't exactly say Sanetoshi's name like that. It would sound ridiculous. And although he'd never admit it, even the co-leader of Kiga Group can have trouble responding to someone who is always looking at him as if he'd like to suck his soul out through his mouth just to see what would happen.

"I have a task for you," says Sanetoshi.

"Yeah?"

"Brush my hair."

There is suddenly a brush balancing precariously between the bunnies' baskets. Kanba looks at it dubiously.

"I've never brushed anyone's hair before," he says.

"Really?" It is as always impossible to read what Sanetoshi was thinking, but the man seems honestly surprised. "Not either of your darling sisters? Himari-chan? Masako-san? Or even Shoma-kun?"

"Why the hell would I brush Shoma's stupid hair?"

"You're right," agrees Sanetoshi. "He doesn't have enough hair to make it worthwhile."

He pulls his hair out of his usual hairstyle and flings the hair tie at his bunnies. The chair he's sitting in reclines to the point that Sanetoshi can rest his head flat against the back while he lays his hair down across Kanba's lap like a blanket. The bunnies, unprompted, nudge the brush closer to Kanba with their noses.

And somehow Kanba ends up where he is now: running a brush through the long pink hair of a dead terrorist. Sanetoshi's hair smells faintly like cherries and has the texture of silk. He keeps wondering if there's any appropriate, friendly way to just stroke the other man's hair so he can feel the smoothness of it without a brush in the way. It's not like he didn't use to do that kind of thing to Shoma all the time.

But he doesn't understand his relationship with Sanetoshi the way he did with Shoma. As stupid as all of that was, at least it made sense. Fake brother who took care of their fake sister like a perfect housewife. Shoma was a pretty simple person, especially compared to someone like Sanetoshi.

Sanetoshi, who is humming quietly and leaning his head into Kanba's fingers. Kanba has no idea when this situation went from absurd but heterosexual hair-brushing to outright petting Sanetoshi's hair, but he pulls his hands back the moment he realizes it.

"Why did you stop?" asks Sanetoshi, turning his head nearly a hundred eighty degrees so he could fix Kanba with his frighteningly red gaze.

"Because it's weird."

"Is it?"

Sanetoshi never blinks. This is a trait that makes him effective as a leader, since people are too disturbed by his unblinking red eyes to talk back. It's just scary when he's right there, in Kanba's space. His hair is hanging down around his shoulders and spilling onto the chair. He looks more feminine than usual and yet also more likely to eat someone's soul.

"Yes, it is."

"You don't think it's..."

He's going to say "electrifying."

"Electrifying?"

"No, I don't. I'd rather be doing something to protect Himari. Or to help Kiga Group achieve our goal."

For the leader of the group, Sanetoshi doesn't seem particularly impressed by Kanba's commitment. "Hmm," he said.

They return to Kiga business, maintaining the watchposts and organizing subordinates as usual. The brush is gone by the time Kanba thinks about it again. He's set to chalk this up to a one-off weirdness on Sanetoshi's part and leave to grab a coffee, but Sanetoshi's voice stops him at the door.

"Tomorrow I want you to make me a friendship bracelet."

"Sanetoshi," says Kanba. "Those are for little girls."

"I know, right?"

Kanba sighs. There is a week left before they carry out their final operation, setting the world back on track for good. After they've fixed the course of their world, Sanetoshi will leave him to his everyday life with Himari. And the next time someone tells him to make a friendship bracelet, they will actually be a cute girl.


End file.
